Investment advisory firm BlackRock is to acquire Global Infrastructure Partners, the entity whose portfolio includes London Gatwick, Edinburgh and Sydney airports.
BlackRock has agreed to take over GIP for $3 billion of cash and around 12 million BlackRock common shares. The transaction is expected to close in the third quarter of this year.
GIP has infrastructure investments in multiple sectors with a total of some $100 billion in assets under management, while BlackRock has around $50 billion.
BlackRock says GIP’s management team will lead the two companies’ combined “highly complementary” infrastructure platform.
It states that infrastructure is forecast to be one of the fastest-growing sectors in the private market, including renewed investment in logistics hubs – airports among them.
“Large government deficits mean that the mobilisation of capital through public-private partnerships will be critical for funding important infrastructure,” it adds.
BlackRock chief Laurence Fink says policymakers are beginning to implement “once-in-a-generation” financial incentives for new infrastructure projects.
“Bringing these two firms together will create the infrastructure platform to deliver best-in-class investment opportunities for clients globally,” he adds.
GIP chief executive Bayo Ogunlesi says the new platform will be the “pre-eminent, one-stop infrastructure solutions provider” for global corporates and the public sector. The company’s portfolio also includes fixed-base operator Signature Aviation.
